Rome
by aquafire95
Summary: Hey, did you know that people who inherited the throne of Rome before age 25 all went insane? Hum, I wonder why...
1. Chapter I

Chapter I

Most people can not remember a traumatic event that occurred under the age of four. Most people can not read War and Peace at age four. Most people can not design a car's ignition system at age five. Octavia was not most people. She was six when she began to suspect this. It was a hot, muggy midwest day. She was sitting on the carpet, evenly spaced between the two beer stains, carefully fiddling around with two soda cans and a circuit board. Her older brother marched into the apartment and slammed the door with a careless air, knowing full well that both next door neighbors had already lodged complaints. He made his way into the kitchen and twisted the cap off a water bottle and poured it over his head, soaking his already sweat-stained tee shirt.

"Mom doesn't like water on the floor." Octavia spoke up from her spot on the living room floor, or the family room, as mom insisted on calling it. Eric shrugged. "She doesn't like a lot of things." Octavia considered refuting the fallacy of that statement, but decided against it. Eric drummed his fingers on the counter and watched her connect a wire to a battery. "What are you doing?" He came around the counter and sat down beside her, bending over the project. Octavia pulled it closer to her lap, covering it with her small hands. "Playing around with your old trash," she forced herself to say. Her breath caught in the throat. Time for a subject change. "Speaking of trash, where were you today? You didn't pick me up from school." Good. She had connected the last subject mentioned with the new topic, just like the social psychology book she had recommended.

Eric looked up, frowning. "What? You calling me trash, Dot?" Octavia stopped breathing. It should have worked. The hand clutching the toy shook slightly. Eric sighed. If he had noticed Octavia's anxiety, he didn't react. "I was out working. I know you can make it home fine without me." He shifted on the dingy carpet, placing a hand halfway onto an old stain. Octavia inwardly cringed and suppressed the urge to push his hand into symmetry with the stain. She didn't care that he had already lost his job but was still bringing home cash, a fact that had escaped mom's notice.

"Where's mom?" Eric asked shortly. Octavia shrugged. "She went out searching for dad. Again. She was here when I came home. Apartment was a mess. Crumbs all over the floor." Eric laughed and stood up. "The only place she'll find him is six feet under." His laugh rang hollow. "I know, Eric. I was here." Eric shoot her a surprised look. "Here?" He flopped on the couch. "You were barely more than a year. Babies can't remember." He said dismissively. Octavia, relieved that Eric was out of her project, found herself irritated again. "Oh, I remember, Eric. We hadn't seen him for three days. Mother had been crying on the couch. Then there were two policemen who knocked- they stood close to the doorway. I was drawing a crude design for a bubble-powered flying car. You were in your room. The cops were here for a total of seven minutes and 35 seconds, I counted. You handled them. Mother stayed on the couch. I remember, Eric," she snapped. It didn't help that Eric was sitting on the line between the cushions instead of directly in the middle of the cushion. Octavia had Eric's full attention. He looked steadily at her with an expression she couldn't read, and then blinked. "I guess you do," he said, then fell silent.

Octavia was too young to understand the importance of that event. Until his death, Eric began to tiptoe around the apartment. Octavia frequently caught him standing silently behind her, watching her draw and design the toys she couldn't afford. A year later, the cops paid another visit. They spent 14 minutes and 15 seconds this time, however, handling a mother who almost had a complete breakdown over the death of her only son. But a complete breakdown wouldn't happen for a few more years.

Octavia was old enough to recognize the gravity of the situation and quickly got busy. By 4th grade she had stopped attending elementary school and immediately began working on a high school degree at home. By age 10 her plan to grow money on trees had failed and she began to sell her blueprints. Then she built and sold machines and toys to kids in the neighborhood. Then cars to the young adults. The extra cash was invested in the stock market. She committed her best projects to memory, convinced they would be stolen and used against her. By age 12, she had graduated high school. While her mother slept, cried, and worked, Octavia built, schemed, and dreamed. By age 16, she was ready.


	2. Chapter II

Chapter II

Bright, flashy, and huge were three words Octavia would use to describe Stark Expo. Extravagant, egotistical, and overdone were three others. A perfect six. Octavia smiled, satisfied, as the photographer snapped a photo of her, Devon, and William in front of SongCroft's exhibit. "Thank you for taking the time to speak with me," he said, for the third time since we've met, Octavia noted irritably. "You're welcome. It's a joy to share my company." Octavia answered smoothly on the outside. He walked eagerly back to the group, checking his camera screen. "It really is an honor to meet you. Your research on wind-powered irrigation? Brilliant," he gushed happily. _Typical. SongCroft is stuck with a rookie. _Octavia laughed. "It's always a pleasure to meet an educated fan. Sustainable farming is a personal passion of mine. I use SongCroft to bring that passion to the world." Devon, SongCroft's personal representative, laughed agreeably and shifted two inches away from Octavia.

After a few more questions about SongCroft's engineering plans, which William and Octavia took turns replying with the rehearsed answers, he turned to some more serious questions. "It's quite an accomplishment to be not only one of the fewest female CEOs in history, but at age 25, also the youngest." _Not as hard as you think, _thought Octavia wryly. "Do you have any words of advice for the next generation of women in the field?" Octavia paused, after if considering the question. "The most important thing to keep in mind is to have confidence in yourself, no matter what people around you believe. The only person you need approval from is yourself." The intern scribbled this down furiously. After a few more dragged out minutes, he wrapped up the interview. "Any statement you and your company would like to make?" Octavia smiled again. Her two colleagues knew better than to speak for her. People had been fired for less. "Yes. SongCroft is committed to a greener future. Ingenuity and cooperation are the keys to get us there." Octavia was proud of that little ditty. She had thought of it at age twelve, the day she invested in Apple stock. Thanking them profusely, the intern finally left. Devon, William, and Octavia began to stroll with the massive crowd towards the center of the exposition. As the greeted contacts and made small talk, Octavia thoroughly scanned and analyzed the passing exhibitions, a difficult task, as they only visually revealed so much.

"I see Hammer Tech is back." William noted. Octavia spared them a glance. "Barely more than a tin can with batteries." She dismissed them. "As usual." Hammer Technologies had brought a visually impressive exhibition. Weapons was the specialty. The shiny dark weapons gleamed under the bright lighting. The diagrams explaining the newest tech-core sounded impressive to the casual passerby. The thin blonde promoting the newest design was doing her job well. "Notice the welding on the gun case below the barrel of the AW-400." William looked at the welt and frowned. "It's hollow." Octavia said dryly. She inclined her head towards William and Devon as they moved along the path. "I'm surprised Tony Stark allowed even a fake gun here." Devon nodded and added "It's possible weapon's technology will be completely outlawed at future expos. I heard they almost did it this year." Octavia nodded. "It's wise we decided to stick to our green technology for our expo. To bad I wasn't able to present my latest design regarding torture…" She chewed her lower lip, considering possible ways to show this without it being stolen. Devon and William's eyes met above her head. They'd heard her theory, all right. Or at least part of it. Octavia had never fully revealed her designed to anyone, until the machine was completed and functional. There were rumors among the divisions that there were branches of the company unknown to each other. As SongCroft's personal representative, Devon himself suspected Octavia managed divisions he wasn't aware of.

"Ah," said William, awkwardly breaking the silence. "It looks like we're almost at the expo center." The crowd had thickened considerably. The heart of the Expo rose before them. Octavia and her companions felt the music pounding through their feet. She held her breath and scanned the lights , and didn't release it until she had found a pattern to their movements. "Welcome to the opening of the annual Stark Expo." The booming voice announced. "I have an interview with Time on SongCroft's exhibition." Devon excused himself, more for William's sake than Octavia's. She nodded. They had already discussed what would and wouldn't be said. He was quickly lost in the crowd. Octavia and William make their way to the drink bar. "I'm interested in seeing the designs from our host." William mentioned as a way of small talk. Octavia barely registered the comment. "I'll take a Scotch on the rocks, please." she addressed the bartender. "And he'll have a martini." The bartender hesitated. "Can I see some ID, madam?" he asked politely. Octavia didn't hesitate to smoothly pull out a driver's license. The bartender's eyes flicked to her her's, and his skin prickled. They were as hard and lifeless as stone. "Thank you," he fumbled, handing it back. At least the drinks were on the house, Octavia thought. Can't expect quality service with free drinks. William took his drink awkwardly and took a sip. Octavia moved easily away from the bar, making her way towards the center stage. William follow, stopping abruptly as a laughing group of women hanging off of a man passed by.

"William!" a loud happy voice boomed out. "What the hell are you doing here? Good to see you!" A tall, broad man with a deep voice strode up to him. The crowd parted before him like the Red Sea. The man laughed, slapping William good-naturedly on the shoulder. William tripped forward and tried not to spill his drink on the front of a geek's shirt. "Business." He managed to say. "SongCroft has an exhibition this year."

"Oh, so you've found an employer?" William winced, wishing he would drop his voice by several decibels. "After the last fiasco, I'm surprised anyone would take a chance with-"

"Yes." William cut him off loudly. "Yes, I'm head engineer at SongCroft. I'm with Octavia Anderson, my employer, exploring the latest inventions in technology." The man laughed again, a common habit with him. "Yes, yes, I'm familiar with SongCroft's products." At least some of them, William thought darkly, taking a sip from his drink. "Energy, huh?" The man plowed on. "Tough field. Good amount of competition, I'd say. Stark Industries, Blue Corp, Argill… Most companies have at least a foot in there. Oh well, I suppose that's why you were bought out, huh?" William stopped scanning the crowd for Octavia long enough to hear the last comment. "What?" he asked confused. "Oh-" the man broke off, then started suddenly, "Well, you know me, always monitoring the stock market- I must check it thirty times an hour-" His laugh seemed forced. "If you don't know about it, it's proably not important-" He turned away, avoiding William's gaze. "I see the event is about to start- better go check in, you understand-" he strode away as suddenly as he had come.

What was that about? thought William, disturbed. He might be loud and clueless, but he was a shrewd stockbroker. Companies did take their time to meet up at parties, where information and money flowed freely. I doubt it's nothing Octavia isn't aware of, he dismissed the conversation. Uneasy, he pushed through the crowd towards the center of the pulsing mob. The crowd had turned, facing the stage. William strained his head to see above the wave of upheld cellphone, cameras, and waving hands. The screens next to the stage pulled back the Stark logo.

The expo logo flashed across the screen, and the expo began. The crowd cheered and raved wildly. Clutching his drink, William noticed it was suddenly empty and wondered who it had landed on. He thought he went deaf from the roar of the crowd as the red streak of Iron Man was spotted. Meanwhile, Octavia was mentally putting the finishing touches on the design for a completely sound-proof, invisible pair of earplugs. She grimaced inwardly as Iron Man was spotted. It didn't seem possible for the crowd to get any louder. She grinned back at Jeff and pretend to lean into his hot, sweaty hand which had somehow found it's way around her shoulders.

"I found SongCroft's exhibit impressive." He had mentioned earlier. "The Green Car design? Ingenious. Have you seen Oscorp's battery idea? Combined, I think it would be a lot more feasible." Enthralled, Octavia had spent the next five minutes discussing designs with him. Only the thought of that last conversation kept Octavia from snapping her glass in half and stabbing the stem into his neck. She watched half-interestedly as Tony Stark arrived and officially opened the Expo. Extravagant and egotistical as usual. She spotted William fumbling near the edge of the crowd. "Excuse me," she tilted her head towards Jeff. "My designing engineer could use some help." He look genuinely disappointed to see her go. "Perhaps we could discuss this again in the future?" he suggested. Octavia glanced at the two women shooting her daggers a few feet away. "Perhaps not." She said drily. She turned without another word and left.

William looked relieved to see her coming out of the crowd. "Octavia," he said. His expression turned into a frown. "Er- When was the last time you checked out stocks?" Er isn't a word, William. Disapointing, Octavia thought. Outwardly, she replied smoothly, "This afternoon. I've been occupied with Expo plans to check them more recently." She paused to pull out her phone and began tapping down design plans for earplugs, careful to tilt over it with her head so it couldn't be seen from above. She has already designed a special screen that couldn't be read from another angle except her own. "What do you think might be off?" She asked tapping away. Devon and William exchanged looked. _You speak_, said one. _No, you speak speak_, said the other. "I don't know." Devon finally said. "Someone mentioned it- I though it should be checked out." In a few strokes Octavia had the screen pulled up. Her face turned bloodless under the pale light. Devon and William remained still and silent. The crowd was cheering and the voices were pounding through the sound system, but to the three co workers the noise was a mile away. Eventually, Octavia broke the stillness. "We need to leave. Go home, William. Immediately. Avoid comment with anyone. Devon, call up the car. We will leave together." They immediately sprang into action. _What happened?_ William asked with his eyes. Something bad. Devon looked back. William left quickly, without saying good bye to Octavia, who was absorbed in her phone. Calm, composed, serious. It was the last image he would have of her.

The atmosphere in the car was chilly, at best, Devon waited. He dared not break the silence. Octavia stared out the window, her reflection unreadable. Finally, she spoke. "SongCroft has been purchased by Stark Industries. Completely." Devon opened his mouth, and closed it again, shocked. "What- how did this happen?" He managed to ask, fighting to grasp the situation. The knuckles holding Octavia's cellphone turned white. "SongCroft has had stocks avaliable from the beginning." She said slowly, as if explaining something to a small child. "You know almost as well as I do the financial problems I've faced since before I officially started the company. I make it this far. Apparently, it wasn't far enough." Her fingers tapped out a pattern on her phone. One two three four five. One two three four five. Devon sat, stunned.

Finally he want for the safest reply he could think of. "I see. What is the next plan of action?" Octavia remained silent, tapping away, staring into the distance. The minutes dragged by. Eventually, the car pulled up in front of Devon's driveway. He stepped out of the car then froze at the sound of Octavia's voice. "Lie low for now. No comments, no press. I'll contact you within the next few days." He nodded and left. The car pulled away with Octavia inside, tapping away.


	3. Chapter III

The next day, 10:00 AM.

New York City, Stark Tower

"Um, security breach," Tony Stark called out loudly, looking up indignantly from the floor. He pulled off his protective goggles. "Excuse me, how did you get in here?" Octavia struggled to remain calm and control the exhilaration coursing through her. She ignored Stark's question, nodding politely to the scruffy, grey-haired man hovering over a table.

"Mr. Stark," she stated. "My name is Octavia Anderson. I'm CEO of SongCroft." Her company name dropped out of her mouth. The room seemed to tilted and grow out of focus. _What the hell was I going to say? _

"Yes, and?" Tony Stark frowned push the bottom of her car with both hands. Octavia imagined screaming at him and genuinely believed her head might explode.

_No, that's irrational. Focus._

"Stark Industries recently bought out Songcroft." She managed to continue. The cool calmness she had maintained with Devon was hanging by its last thread. "Yep, we're expanding." Tony said absentmindedly. Octavia cut to the chase. "I can't allow you to do that." She put as much authority into her voice as she could. "Huh." He didn't even bother to look her way. "Well, to be honest, it doesn't look like you have much of a voice in that matter." Octavia's vision snapped. Ske kicked out the car jack viciously, causing the car to crash down. "I don't think you understand, Mr. Stark." Her heart beat a tattoo on her ribcage and she glared at Tony Stark, forgetting the rest of the room, enjoying the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She leaned closer. "I have come to far to be dragged back by a pampered, immature boy who has never had to struggled in his life." Her words tasted bitter. "I will not allow that to happen. Not as long as I can fight." With one last jerk she stood up and stalked out of the room, blowing past the other man. Tony Stark yelled something behind her, but whether Octavia ignored him or couldn't hear past the roaring in her ears wasn't clear.

She took the stairs to the first floor. Security didn't stop her as she blew through the large glass doors onto the driveway. She chaffer was ready and Octavie stepped in, slamming the door hard behind her. Breathing heavily, she stared unseeingly ahead, gripping her legs tightly with her hands.

"I take it it didn't go very well." The hooded figure sitting across from her spoke up. Octavia jerked her head up, avoiding his gaze. "I tried." She said flatly. He didn't press for details. They drove silently for a few minutes, the sunny day flashing past their windows, unnoticed. "My offer still remains." He finally spoke up. He leaned forward slightly, steel gleaming under his cloak. Octavia couldn't help herself from staring at it. She swallowed and then spoke. "Good." She grimaced as Tony Stark's face floated in her mind's eye, hardening her resolve. "I accept. How soon can we start, Eric?" Eric shifted and the cloak fell the the side, revealing a hard body half encased in metal. Where his right arm should have been was a metal sheath. Octavia started, openly shocked. "As soon as we arrive. The system is fully operational."

The hooded face made it impossible to read his emotions, but Octavia could have sworn he was smiling.


	4. Chapter IV

Chapter IV

Octavia stepped out of the car onto the cold concrete in front of the warehouse. The wind blew in from the bay, snatching at the clothes and hair of the people on the docks. Eric shut the door and came around to Octavia's side. "They're ready inside." Without another word he strode to a side door in the warehouse. Octavia hesitated briefly, then followed. The dirty, dark, and trashy environment surfaced old memories of tagging after Eric on the way to kindergarten, feeling slow and frustrated. Octavia pinched her lips together and stopped reminiscing. Not how she felt now. She had built a company out of nothing and worked successfully for several years. She was richer, smarter, and respected. Eric may still be physically superior, but she was already going to change that. Once Tony Stark was out of the way, the path to dominating energy technology would be clear. The thought brought her so much pleasure she sighed and happily tapped her fingers on her legs. This did not go unnoticed by Eric.

They reached an elevator after walking down a dingy hall and began to descend. Octavia counted the seconds and approximated the distance. After 100 ft had passed, they slowed to a stop. The door opened and Octavia inhaled sharply. The dingy warehouse was gone. Stark white equipment gleamed back at her. Guards in crisp, yellow uniforms guarded the entrance while subdued looking men and women scurried about the equipment. The hum of machines and the hushed voices of the workers was oddly silent. As Eric and Octavia walked towards the center of the room, Octavia glanced upwards, noting the number of guards along the catwalk, high above the laboratory. Eric stopped at a station in the middle of the room. A small, mousy man approached nervously. "So this is the subject?" He stammered.

"Yes."

"We can start immediately, then." He turned towards Octavia, avoiding her eyes. "Step this way, please." He gestured towards the platform. Wordlessly, Octavia followed. Two people stepped up and began to measure her height and weight. The machines were already up and humming. Octavia turned her head back and forth, watching the scientists (or what she hoped were scientists) scurry around. Eric remained unmoved, holding his good arm behind his back and his "sword arm" at his side. Octavia's face twitched as she fought tthe urge to giggle. The whole situation was absured, really. A secret lab? A sword for an arm? Mad scientists? What was this, an episode of Spiderman? Really. She could leave and hire a hit man to do the job for her. Only the thought of her fingers wrapped personally around Stark's throat brought her any satisfaction. There probably weren't any hit man good enough to kill Stark, anyway. If you want a job done well, do it yourself.

The small scientist they had first met cleared his throat. "All ready." he squeaked. "Please step inside the tube and remain six inches from the sides." Octavia did as told, turning around to face Eric. Suprisingly, he spoke up. "Are you completely sure you want to do this?"

Octavia blinked. She searched his face, wondering if there was a sliver of compassion left in him. The hood of his cloak left the upper half of his face completely in shadows, and his impassive mouth gave no answers. She didn't detect and comradeship or sibling affection there. She swallowed.

"Yes, of course."

A technician stepped up and fastened a mask with tubes leading upwards over her face. The door slide shut. Liquid began pouring in from the top, soaking Octavia and filling the tube. Right before Octavia lost consciousness, the sensation of bee stings covered every pore.

Outside the tube, Eric glanced upwards towards the catwalk. The scientists were absorbed with the procedure. This would be the only successful procedure of this kind since the Wolverine Project. If it went as planned. Eric stopped scanning when he found what he was looking for. The director of ACME was standing high above, watching the equipment. Eric understood what was on his mind, despite the distance.

_Are you sure she's right for this? _

_Yes._ He affirmed. _Yes. _

The director's last words came back to him. _Fine. I will risk her. Any mistakes will be on your shoulders... _Suddenly, Eric's attention was jerked back to the tube. Inside it, Octavia was screaming.


	5. Chapter V

Chapter V

Tony Stark was speeding, as usual. It was an almost pristine summer evening just outside New York City- warm breezes, blue skies, sparkling sun setting in the bay. Tony was enjoying it all with his convertible top down. The wind tugged his hair and Tony Stark bopped his head to the radio. Life was cruising as well as he was.

Until the music stopped and Tony's car came to a screeching halt. "What the-" he fumbled for the keys, which turned but the car made no sound. The road was eerily silent now. He uselessly punch the radio buttons. Nothing. He swore and pushed open the car door. Jammed. Good thing the top was down. He hopped out and opened the car hood. Everything appeared to be in order- just as he was about to enter and ignite the ignition, the car suddenly roared to life. Tony Stark fell flat on his backside as it accelerated down the road, around a distant corner, and out of sight. If the situation wasn't so puzzling, Tony might have laughed. Dazed he stood up and reached inside his leather jacket to summon the Iron Man suit.

Thirty feet away, Octavia smiled. Just as planned. Concealed underneath the concrete walk, she felt the suit coming. Her instant intimate awareness of the machine took her breath away. Tony Stark had almost no rival when it came to engineering. Iron Man was a thing of beauty. Embracing it with her conscience caused Octavia to sigh with pleasure. She allowed it to descend and open for Tony Stark. Clinching herself around him and greeting him in Jarvis's voice felt like the most natural thing in the world. Tony Stark positioned himself to blast off. Nothing happened.

"Jarvis." Octavia felt Tony Stark's heart rate speed up. "Jarvis, what's going on?"

"I'm afraid I don't answer to you anymore, sir."

Success was so exhilarating. Octavia laughed and cut her voice over Jarvis's. "Remember me? You probably don't. I doubt you lose sleep over the lives your ruin."

He scowled. "What do you want?"

"Good question." Octavia paused, considering. "Really I want to wrap my hands around you throat and strangle the life out of you, but that won't be enough. First, I will destroy you, then I will kill you. Simple as that."

"And how are you going to pull that off?"

Octavia shrugged, enjoying herself do much that she forget he couldn't see her. "I've alway connected with technology. Now we're connecting on a different level."

"I wouldn't be scared even if that made sense," Tony scoffed.

"Are you always this annoying? No wonder so many people are desperate to kill you." Octavia snarled. She jerked Iron Man viciously and started to slowly fly it upwards. "Really, Tony, I believe the proper term is technopath." She flew herself, her body, upwards until she came face to face with Iron Man.

"So now you can fly, too." Tony said drily. Octavia ignored him. Staring at something, and at the same time seeing herself theough that something was mind-blowing. As if moving a fifth limb, she turned Iron Man towards NYC.

They landed at Stark Tower an hour later. As soon as they had come within fifty feet of the tower, Octavia probed outwards and welded with the security systems. Her conciousness widened and she felt a rush of euphoria at the world beneath her mind, a part of her mind. Within seconds Stark Tower was silently and completely under her control, no, more intimate than that. It was an extension of her being. She touched down with Iron Man and entered the building. The tower kept his suit on. She closed her eyes and saw through the tower's controls. The scruffy grey-haired man was in his room. She saw Pepper on a lower level, sitting at a desk, typing. Perfect. Inside his prison suit Tony was trying futily to gain control. Octavia and the suit ignored him. "Don't worry Tony." She spoke through Jarvis, "It will be over before this night is out."

The tower began to lock down. Unlike a normal lockdown, this one was silent, giving its inhabitants no indication of why. Efficiently, windows, doors, vents, and even electricity plugs were blocked and sealed. Octavia allowed the air system to kick in. After all, if she couldn't breathe, she couldn't kill Tony Stark. By now the man in the room was trying to override the controls, which was impossible. Octavia unlocked the door and began to walk with the Iron Man downstairs. "I'm surprised it was this easy." She spoke to Iron Man through the controls, her mouth closed. "Did you ever consider the possibility of facing a technopath?" How would you overcome this problem? she wondered privately. There must be a safeguard against this, somewhere. Perhaps a pure element would block her mind. But for now the tower was running smoothly with her. There was no resistance, no grey areas. As she watched herself descending through a high-quality stark cam, there was one word she would use to describe the expierence: harmony. The machines seemed almost eagar to meld with her. The circuts and chips behaved as though they were programmed to be an extension of her. She stepped out into the corridor, Iron Man clunking behind her. She felt like one arm and he was the other. But which one was he? Who was right and who was left? She was probably left- because she'd be left standing when this was over. She laughed, physically and mentally, and she would have sworn the machine hummed with her.

"Now this is funny?" Tony Stark demanded. She didn't bother to explain. No one would understand that. "We're here." She responded cheerfully. She paused before the door. Pepper was aware that something was wrong. There was a lockdown, after all. But she didn't know why, and she didn't know Tony's condition. Considering the facts, Octavia made a decision. She stepped to the side and turned towards Iron Man to enter as if he had any control over the matter. Out of Pepper's sight, she opened the door and Iron Man walked in. "Tony." Pepper sounded releaved, and through Iron Man Octavia could see that she was. "What's going on?"

"There's an emergency, Pepper. We've got to get out of here." Iron Man responded. Tony was inside, yelling his head off, but Octavia was overridden the voice transmitter, of course. Pepper opened her mouth to respond, and looking back, Octavia could pinpoint that moment as Where Things Went Wrong.

First, something happened upstairs. Then, a loud roar shook the building. Despite her expanded consciousness, Octavia was, in the end, only human and had mostly ignored the rest of the tower in her focus to kill Pepper. In the grey-haired man's rooms, the cameras shorted out. The whole level blacked out. Panicked, Octavia re-rounded the last footage. In a few seconds time she saw the man standing by the door, then suddenly spazzing and growing in bulk. It took another second for Octavia to remember that the Hulk was on the Avenger's team. In those few seconds, the voice control slipped and Tony was yelling at a confused Pepper- "I'm trapped! Go-"

As Octavia regained full control of the suit, a startled Pepper lunged behind her desk. Octavia raised her- no, Iron Man's- hand and fired, too late. The cameras on the floor above picked up the Hulk bashing into the upper floor. Octavia could feel. The tower's security was no good- what the Hulk hadn't destroyed had no effect. Octavia chose between finishing Pepper and dying by Hulk or leaving Pepper to fight off the Hulk. There wasn't any time to decide.

"You're too slow, Dot." Eric's grinning fact seemed to float before her eyes. In reality, Octavia screamed. Mentally, her five-year old self scowled back at him. She felt the heat of the California sun and the smell of stale cigarettes and smog. Ahead of her, Eric, kept laughing. "I can always out-run you, slowpoke." Octavia started off, pounding down the pavement again.

Snapping back to reality, she guided Iron Man to throw the desk off into the wall, and pointed her (his?) blaster at Pepper as the Hulk crashed in top of him. The suit was crushed and the blast hit the hulk with no effect. Furious, he opened his mouth and roared. The vibrations shook the whole floor. It started at Octavia's feet and traveled to her head. Even in the hallway she would have sworn that she could feel his hot breath. A primal terror gripped her thoughts and the urge to flee was overwhelming. She put all her strength into Iron Man. The Hulk has risen by now and with a surge of strength she pushed Iron Man away from him and into the hallway. Wait, what was she thinking?

Before she had time to lament her choice, the Hulk had barged into the hallways on grabbed Iron Man. Octavia shrieked and grasped mentally for anything to help her. The part of the tower that was able to respond held no answers. Tony's voice broke through her mind. "Just let me talk to him! He'll-"

"Never, Stark!" Octavia screeched. THe Hulk crushed the suits arms and threw him against the wall. He pounded the floor with both fists and left for Octavia, cowering in the corner. "I'd die before I let you-" She was still screaming. In the second she had left, she mentally reached out, crying out for the suit. He tried to respond for her, but he had been to heavily damaged. It was to late anyways. The Hulk's massive hand wrapped around Octavia's fragile body. She had no more breath left to scream as the pressure increased around her body.

"I guess you were the left arm," she thought groggily, then total despair washed over her and she blacked out.


	6. Chapter VI

Chapter VI

Tony Stark's shoes echoed as he walked across the white, brightly lit room. Ahead of him was a square container, shaped somewhat like a coffin. The room was huge- 200 feet of empty space above, 200 feet in length and width. Completely bare, almost completely empty. Tony stopped next to the SHIELD agent, a few feet away from the coffin. The agent spoke first.

"She's completely comatose. It's unlikely she'll ever awake. We found a good deal of information after an investigation." He matter-of-factly described Octavia's past. "Her brother, Eric, is actually one of the top super villains in the Americas. We don't think she knew this until recently. It appears he approached her about the super soldier project. We found an abandoned makeshift lab in the warehouse district. ACME has made a semi-successful supervillain."

Tony Stark nodded. "Too bad she's not awake."

"Even if she was, it's unlikely she could tell us anything we don't know already."

Tony Stark didn't reply.

"We spoke with her companies employees, past and present. They all confirmed what we thought- highly secretive, erratic habits, paranoid behaviors." He look at Tony. "Most of them were relieved Stark Industries was taking over."

Tony shrugged. "I didn't mean it like that. SongCroft has some brilliant designs. I wanted to keep it floating." He fell silent.

The agent didn't bother to shrug. "Well, I have other duties to attend to. I'll see you later." He turned and walked across the cell, his steps filling the empty room. Tony waited a few minutes longer, staring at Octavia, resting on the bed. Her face looked peaceful, younger. More like the 25 year old she was supposed to be, not the older woman the grey hair around her temples suggested. His mind drifted to her file. Her past life. The inventions that had become his property. Finally he turned around and left without a backwards glance.

Octavia felt like she was floating. It was a good feeling. She hadn't felt like this before, not in her dingy apartment or in her luxurious house, or work, or at home. Images and sounds floated past, but she didn't try to grasp them. Too disturbing. It was so easy to let go. So easy… One image came back, again and again. As consistently as it came, Octavia let it go, for how long, she didn't know. There was no measure of time where she was. When it finally budged and refused to move, Octavia felt exasperated. She allowed it to stay, looked at it. It was a single thought: Tony Stark. With a jolt, Octavia opened her eyes.

FIN


End file.
